ReadWrite - square cashhttp://readwrite.com/tag/square-cash
enCopyright 2015 Wearable World Inc.http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rssTue, 31 Mar 2015 13:47:54 -0700How Pebble Became The Cheapest Android Smartwatch Around<!-- tml-version="2" --><div tml-image="ci01c765bac001c80a" tml-image-caption="" tml-render-layout="inline"><figure><img src="http://a3.files.readwrite.com/image/upload/c_fill,cs_srgb,dpr_1.0,q_80,w_620/MTI4MTgyOTY2MDg5MTY1NDQz.jpg" /><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div><p>Pebblers with Android smartphones can now <a href="https://blog.getpebble.com/2015/02/16/ad-23-public/">receive and respond to Android Wear notifications</a>, a big step forward that might&nbsp;actually make the Pebble the least expensive Android Wear smartwatch currently available.</p><p>A new firmware update basically bring to Pebble the same active notifications that Android Wear users enjoy on their fancier—and more expensive—smartwatches. A navigation app's notifications, for instance, will appear as turn-by-turn directions on the watch; a music app's notifications could let you pause, skip a song and adjust the volume.</p><p>While the new addition isn't as easy-to-use as it is on Android Wear devices (users can't swipe to interact with notifications, and instead have to navigate the Pebble's menus via its side buttons), it'll still&nbsp;helps the elder statesman of the smartwatch world stay competitive as the countdown to the Apple Watch continues.</p><h2>Androidizing Your Pebble</h2><div tml-image="ci01c765c0e001c80a" tml-image-caption="Square Cash via Android Wear notifications on the Pebble smartwatch." tml-render-layout="right"><figure><img src="http://a1.files.readwrite.com/image/upload/c_fill,cs_srgb,dpr_1.0,q_80,w_620/MTI4MTgyOTkyNjY0MzAyODY2.jpg" /><figcaption>Square Cash via Android Wear notifications on the Pebble smartwatch.</figcaption></figure></div><p>Start by updating your Pebble to the latest firmware (version 2.9), then download version 2.3.0 of the Pebble Android app from the <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.getpebble.android">Google Play Store</a>. From there, you'll also need to also install the Android Wear app.</p><p>The <a href="http://help.getpebble.com/customer/portal/articles/1819783-android---actionable-notifications">Pebble troubleshooting page</a> explains a few workarounds for making the new Android Wear features work to your liking. Depending on the apps, there still may be a few hiccups along the way.</p><p>There are some unexpected pluses as well. Android Wear notifications on Pebble will allow users to store canned responses that users can send in response to text messages—a feature still missing from Android Wear without the use of <a href="http://wearableworldnews.com/2015/01/14/wearresponses-app-solves-one-android-wears-biggest-problems/">a third-party app</a>. &nbsp;The update also allows users to receive Gmail notifications and send and receive money via Square Cash.</p><h2><strong>Is Pebble's Gain Android Wear's Loss?</strong></h2><p>There are still some unknowns as well. It's not clear that Pebble will handle all Android Wear notifications with equal grace, or if some won't work at all. And we don't know if Pebble has a "whitelist" of Android apps whose notifications will definitely work with the watch. I've reached out to Pebble and will update if I hear back. <strong>(See update below.)</strong></p><p>Meanwhile, Pebble’s embrace of this Android Wear feature may have other implications worth considering. Google’s hardware partners are already&nbsp;<a href="http://readwrite.com/2015/02/17/htc-samsung-lg-stick-with-google-android-wear">hedging their bets on Android Wear</a> by embracing alternative operating systems<a href="http://readwrite.com/2015/02/17/htc-samsung-lg-stick-with-google-android-wear"></a>, either as replacements for Google or as experiments they could turn to should Android Wear falter.</p><p>Pebble’s Android Wear compatibility might, conceivably, strengthen the software platform by greatly expanding its wearable reach. On the other hand, if the integration works well, Pebble might well become a less expensive alternative that could ultimately impact the already limited sales of dedicated Android Wear smartwatches.</p><p><strong>Update:&nbsp;</strong>A spokesperson from Pebble has reached out to ReadWrite to further elaborate on the new Android Wear feature in the latest firmware update.</p><p>"Pebble can perform any action or interact that is possible on an Android wear device in response to an incoming message, except for reply by voice," said Rachel Manson from Pebble's press team. "On top of that, Pebble can respond with things that Android Wear cannot at this time. For example, Pebble lets you reply to any notification with emoji, something that regular Android Wear watches cannot do right now."</p><p>As far as whether there's a list of pre-approved compatible apps, Manson says "there is no 'whitelist.' All notifications will work out of the box."</p><p><em>Photos courtesy of Pebble</em></p>With Android Wear notifications, it's only a few steps from the real thing.http://readwrite.com/2015/02/17/pebble-android-wear-notifications
http://readwrite.com/2015/02/17/pebble-android-wear-notificationsWearTue, 17 Feb 2015 13:31:39 -0800Brian P. RubinSnapchat: Our New "Snapcash" Won't Disappear—Oh, And Neither May Your Snaps<!-- tml-version="2" --><div tml-image="ci01bfe4ac7001c80a" tml-image-caption=""><figure><img src="http://a1.files.readwrite.com/image/upload/c_fill,cs_srgb,w_620/MTI2MDcwNzQyMjQzNjQ1OTE4.png" /><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div><p>Snapchat <a href="http://blog.snapchat.com/post/102895720555/introducing-snapcash">jumped on the payments bandwagon on Monday</a>, through a deal with Square Cash which allows users to transfer money to their friends as easily as sending photos of their naughty bits. &nbsp;</p><p>Simply trust the Snapchat app with your debit card number, as you might your personal pics, type $ and the amount you wish to send in the chat-text field, and hit the payment button. The recipient has 24 hours to accept the cash infusion, or it disappears back into your bank account.&nbsp;</p><p>Snapchat introduced the new service, available now for Android and coming soon to iOS, with a discount<em>&nbsp;</em>Busby Berkeley musical-style video featuring dancing girls and raining money. But security concerns from potential users are sure to ensue now that Snapchat is attempting to compete with Venmo and Google Wallet in peer-to-peer money transfer.&nbsp;</p><p>Snapchat, after all, launched as a photo-sharing app that deletes images seconds after they're viewed. And nobody wants to think about their money "disappearing"—or, worse, the opposite. Just imagine your hard-earned cash leaking all over the Internet, as happened in October with hundreds of thousands of personal pics purloined from a third-party Snapchat photo-saving app.</p><blockquote><p><strong>See also:&nbsp;</strong><a href="http://readwrite.com/2014/10/10/snapchat-nude-photo-leak-4chan-hack-snappening"><strong>Snapchat Blames Victims In Nude Photo Leak</strong></a></p></blockquote><p>Square is handling all the debit card details, with established security protocols for money transfer that should prevent your life savings from popping up all over the Internet. As for your future photos, Snapchat <a href="https://www.snapchat.com/privacy">has updated its privacy policy</a> to let you know it can't be expected to protect your photos from leaking: "Don’t send messages that you wouldn’t want someone to save or share."</p><p><em>Screenshot via Snapchat</em></p>What's not to trust?http://readwrite.com/2014/11/18/snapchat-snapcash-square-mobile-payments
http://readwrite.com/2014/11/18/snapchat-snapcash-square-mobile-paymentsMobileTue, 18 Nov 2014 10:29:10 -0800Helen A.S. PopkinHow Square Cash Could Put Money In The Company's Bank Account<!-- tml-version="2" --><div tml-image="ci01b27a1550016d19" tml-render-position="center" tml-render-size="large"><figure><img src="http://a4.files.readwrite.com/image/upload/c_fill,cs_srgb,dpr_1.0,q_80,w_620/MTIyMjk0MzcwNzczOTkyMDM4.jpg" /></figure></div><p>Square, the San Francisco-based payments service, rolled out its <a href="https://squareup.com/news/releases/2013/square_cash_makes_sending_money_easy">new person-to-person payments service Square Cash</a>&nbsp;to the public today after months of invitation-only testing.</p><p>During the test, Square charged a 50-cent fee for transactions. But in the public rollout, it has made the service completely fee-free.</p><p>Square has entered a very competitive market. PayPal has offered fee-free person-to-person payments since 1999, and the eBay Inc. unit recently announced plans to acquire Braintree, whose Venmo subsidiary offers a similar free option. Many banks offer free person-to-person payments, often through third-party services like PopMoney.</p><p>In short, what Square's doing is not particularly innovative. Nor is it lucrative, since Square is incurring the small but still real costs of transferring money from one bank account to another.</p><p>So what's in it for the company?</p><h2>Debit, To Square's Credit</h2><p>To send or receive money with Square Cash, you need to attach your debit card to your account. And there's where it benefits.</p><p>Square's bread-and-butter products is Square Register, the app that allows merchants to accept debit or credit cards either by swiping the plastic card or charging a card stored on a Square user's account. Square collects 2.75% of most transactions, forwarding the rest to the merchant.</p><p>When Square charges a debit card, it pays different rates than when it charges a credit card. For large transactions, debit-card rates can be far lower than credit-card rates, thanks to a 2010 law <a href="http://cardnotpresent.com/news/cnp-news-aug13/Federal_Judge_Overturns_Durbin_Rules,_Debit_Interchange_up_For_Grabs_Again_-_Aug__1,_2013/">called the Durbin Act</a>. Square doesn't pass on these savings to merchants; they pay 2.75% regardless. (Higher-volume merchants might save a bit of money <a href="https://squareup.com/pricing">using a fixed-rate monthly plan</a> Square offers, but they still don't get the benefit of lower debit-card rates.)</p><p>While the Durbin Act's caps on debit-card fees are getting fought in courts, the lower rates currently stand.</p><h2>The Bottom Line For Square Cash</h2><p>It's smart for Square to offer this product, which is increasingly part of a complete digital-wallet solution. Even Google, which has struggled with its payments offerings, has rolled out email-based payments for Gmail users.</p><p>While it's not particularly novel, consumers won't care who got there first: Square may benefit from marketing its service as simpler than Venmo or PayPal. (I recently struggled to sign up for the supposedly easy-to-use Venmo, whose app couldn't immediately verify my bank account with a large financial institution.)</p><p>And users who download the Square Cash app might be prompted to take a second look at Square Wallet, the company's mobile app that lets users pay by checking into a retail location and announcing their name to the cashier.</p><p>There are a few problems with this brilliant moneymaking scheme, all of Square's own devising: Square Cash is "a separate app from Square Wallet," a Square spokesperson notes. And from our testing, it's not clear that a user with a Square Wallet account can use that same account for sending cash, which seems inelegant for a company concerned with simplicity. We've asked Square to clarify this curious divide between its apps.</p><p>Square's insistence on using email for transactions might also turn off younger consumers, who have largely eschewed email for social networks and text messaging. Venmo, for example, lets you send money to a contact using just a mobile phone number.</p>The free service could lower the money-moving service's costs on other transactions.http://readwrite.com/2013/10/15/square-cash-rollout
http://readwrite.com/2013/10/15/square-cash-rolloutMobileTue, 15 Oct 2013 18:54:44 -0700Owen Thomas